Foodie Monday: How to Keep More of Your Paycheck At Whole Foods

People (including myself) call it “Whole Paycheck” for a reason. First, I put one thing in the basket, then another, I wander up all the aisles looking at the new and interesting foods, before I know it my grocery total has reached astronomic proportions, and I didn’t even manage to get anything on my list! It has happened far too many times.

To shop at Whole Paycheck and still have money left over requires a little discipline and changing the way you look at things in the store.

LOOK ABOVE AND BELOW EYE LEVEL

I’ve read that the most expensive and brand name items are at eye level. The generic brands (which are often just as good) or just plain cheaper (lesser known companies) items are above and below your eye level. Take a look the next time you are in a grocery store. It is a great marketing strategy. If you want to save a little money look above and below your eye level. Soon, you’ll be so used to those “non-eye level” brands that it will become a habit to find them.

GET MOST OF YOUR (HOPEFULLY ORGANIC) PRODUCE AT FARMER’S MARKETS AND ELSEWHERE

Buying produce at Whole Paycheck adds up quickly. Take a look at the organic section at Trader Joe’s. It is MUCH better than it used to be. Also, go to Farmer’s Markets. Not only do you get to support local farmers, but you ended up with amazing deals. The picture on the right is what I just got at the Farmer’s Market for less than $20! Six white nectarines, brussels sprouts, nine golden pluots, three baskets of strawberries, seven heirloom tomatoes, two bags of bell peppers, string beans, and a head of lettuce! Just think what that would’ve cost at Whole Paycheck.

CHECK (AND USE!) THE BULK AISLES

This is a no-brainer and yet it took me a long time to start doing it. I once saw an employee at Whole Paycheck dump a packaged bag of mixed greens into a large bin for loose leaf lettuce at a much cheaper price. Packaged goods are more expensive because they are packaged for your convenience. Cereals, nuts, oatmeal, and even chocolate covered pretzels are cheaper if you’ll willing to put it in a bag yourself. It is that simple.

Herbs and spices are where you can really save. Most bottles of spices will run you between $3-$6 a piece. Depending on what it is, on average you will get about .25 ounces. If you buy them in bulk and put them in your own spice jars (*ahem* IKEA!) you could easily end up paying less than $2 for twice as much if not more. You pay by the ounce in pre-packaged bottles, but you pay by the pound in bulk! 16 oz = 1 pound. If you pay $5 for .25 ounces, the bulk price might be around $25 per pound making the price under a $1 for TWICE as much! Think about that. Besides, often times you only want a little bit of a spice or dried herb for a recipe that you may never use again. Buy only what you need and don’t get distracted by all the nice shiny convenient packaging.

These are simple tips that will help you save big at the Whole Paycheck checkout counter. If you can stay disciplined and focused who knows . . . You just might start calling it whole Foods instead of Whole Paycheck. 😛

2 Comments

tokyovegan - August 27, 2013

The bulk bins are my favorite section of Whole Paycheck for spices, nuts, grains, beans, etc. While not cheap, they are a lot less than packaged ones, as you point out, and you can buy only what you need while saving on costly packaging. The WFM section that really challenges my paycheck is the prepared foods bar. There’s a little game I play to see how close I come to exactly 1lb, so I don’t go over 8.99 or whatever it is–which is getting up into restaurant territory. Some WFM locations also have a special discount for prepared foods one day each week that I try to catch.

- the superdiva, dk - August 27, 2013
  
  Thanks for you comment and great tips on saving money in the prepared foods section of Whole Paycheck.